(Jupiter, FL - October 2004) Have a washer
and dryer at home? Good chance the dryer is five or six inches
away from the back wall and the flex exhaust hose resembles
a snake. “Tight bends in the flex exhaust hose accelerate lint
accumulation and can really impair the efficiency of the dryer
and—worse yet—create a fire hazard,” says Rick Harpenau, owner
of In-O-Vate Technologies Inc. and inventor of The Dryerbox.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that in
1998, clothes dryers were associated with 15,600 fires, which
resulted in 20 deaths and 370 injuries. Fires can occur when
lint builds up in the dryer or in the exhaust duct. Lint can
block the flow of air, cause excessive heat build-up, and result
in a fire in some dryers.

The Dryerbox is a simple metal receptacle about the size of
a kitty-litter pan, which installs between the studs in new
construction behind the dryer and facilitates the collection
and housing of the flex exhaust hose. It provides a net gain
of one square foot of living area and close to $6 per year in
electricity or fuel savings. It also allows the dryer to be
positioned without fear of kinking the exhaust hose. The Dryerbox
allows the storage and recoiling of the flex transition hose
between the dryer and the wall connection to take place inside
the wall cavity, eliminating the zig-zag of ductwork most households
have tolerated for decades. Model versions include depths for
2"x4" or 2"x6" walls and for an upward direction
of exhaust flow and a downward.

“It might take five
or ten years, but we believe that almost every new home will
eventually be built with a receptacle behind the dryer that
facilitates the collection and connection of the flex transition
hose,” said Rick Harpenau, President of In-O-Vate Technologies
Inc. “As builders, architects, inspectors, subcontractors and
homeowners see the product for themselves; they are asking why
this wasn’t available sooner. It really is a common sense type
of product.” Today, there are over 500,000 installed in new
homes across the country.